Owari Watashi no Yarikata
by SupernaturalHearts
Summary: Zetsu didn't get to Obito in time to keep him from using Art of Rinne Rebirth, so not only is Madara back,so are all fallen comrades and the reanimated on the battle field. Will eventually be Yaoi. Neji/Naru and maybe side pairing Mina/Kaka.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I hate plot bunnies! As soon as I think I have one idea down more pop up. This fic may not be updated as often as my other but I will try to keep updating on a weekly basis. **

**Dedication: kamui5- This is for you. You wanted a Neji/Naru fic, I wanted to write one and I'm pissed he's dead so I'm doing it my way now. Hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Neji would be alive...Hence this fic.**

**Prologue**

My body moves before I can even think.

"We need a medic! Hurry!" I scream why aren't they moving?

"No. I am no longer….."

"Neji."

"Naruto."

'_**No no no. he can't say my name like that. Like it's the last time he'll ever say it.'**_

"Everyone is willing to die for you. So…You hold more….Than one life in your hands."

'_**Don't speak. I'll save you. Please don't leave me.' **_

"And it seems….my life too…may have been…one of them."

"Why? Why did you do this?"

'_**You can't die yet I haven't told you.'**_

"You were going to change your clan."

'_**And I was going to help you. I was going to stand beside you the whole way.'**_

"Why would you go so far for me? Even give up your life…"

"Because…You called me a genius."

'_**You are so much more than that. Don't go. Please. I'll do anything. You can't die I promised.'**_

'_**I just want to hold you here in my arms. I know you were please by what you did because you have the smallest smile on your face. I want to be so mad at you right now you left me so fast I didn't even get the chance to tell you…I love you.'**_

'_**I will kill them for you and I will protect everyone else like I wasn't able to do for you.' **_

'_**I will miss you Neji. Goodbye.'**_

* * *

"Art of Rinne Rebirth."

"But that Jutsu will result in your…"

"I feel like I finally understand why Nagato…Betrayed me back then."

"Are you sure about this? You could live and atone for your sins."

"No. That would be the easy way out."

'_**What are those lights? Why do they look so familiar? It couldn't be. Could it?'**_

'_**Just need to enter Sage Mode and I'll know."**_

"_**Obito…He did it…They're all back…Dad, Jiji, Neji…**_


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I really sorry this chapter is shorter than I wanted it to be. It feels a little rushed maybe but I've tried to fix that the best I can. I have decided to make this a one-sided Sasu/Naru I wasn't going to originally but he decided to be his usual self so I wanted to be a bitch to him ;) I'm not sure if I should pair him with anyone but if you would like to see him as a side pairing with someone lemme know (not Sakura I have plans for her). Anyways I hope you enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. **

**Chapter 1**

_Have to see. I know I can feel them but I need to see it for myself. _

Right now I am not thinking about the battle or Madara who is being kept occupied by a newly alive Hashirama. I am not thinking about Obito who just gave his life. I am running and I can see him right there with Kakashi-Sensei and Obito's immobile body lying there in front of them.

"Dad." It comes out a whisper. I meant for it to be louder but he still hears me. He's still in Bijuu Mode so I can't see what color his eyes are but the whites of his are no longer black like when he was an Edo Tensai. I can see his chest rise and fall with each breath he takes. And I'm surprised to see he is no longer missing his arm. He's whole and alive. I want to laugh and cry at the same time. I don't even realize I'm crying until his hands come up to cup my cheeks and wipe away the tears cascading down them. His hands are warm.

"You're back… You're here… You're alive…" I don't know what else to say and then he is hugging me and I am laughing and crying and I can see Kakashi standing a little ways to the side of us and I can see a few tears leak out but he is smiling and even though he still has that damn mask on it's the happiest smile I think I have ever seen on him. And I am happy for him. He has his Sensei back and he has been alone and mourning for way too long.

I can feel them all. Thousands of shinobi at my back ready to finish this war. Moral which had been dwindling was now at an all-time high thanks to the fact that friends, comrades and loved one were alive again.

_Love._

Turning around I can see Sasuke off to the side standing with his new 'teammates' behind him and the Third and Second nearby.

_Bastard. _

I don't hate him. I can't bring myself to hate anyone anymore but I don't care if he comes back to the village or not. After him showing up and proclaiming that he was going to become Hokage, I just stopped caring. I forgave him for trying to kill me more than once, I forgave him for his betrayal. But I cannot forgive him for wanting to take my dream away from me. I worked so damn hard to get where I am today. Blood, sweat, tears and heartbreak, years of it.

I know who I am now, where I come from and I am proud of myself. My parents are proud of me. My Sensei' are all proud of me. Everyone has acknowledged me and respects me. I have one goal left, become Hokage, and I will not allow him to take that away from me. I am done forgiving him. I will fight with him now because he is powerful and Madara is a formidable enemy but after this war is done, if he lives, I am done.

I can see two figures out of the corner of my eye, standing not too far away, and turning towards them I see its Hinata help Neji stand. How could I have forgotten? He's alive. I am smiling so much my cheeks are starting hurt.

"Neji." I yell getting his attention. He jerks his head up to look my way and even this far away from him I can see those pearly white eyes. Before anyone can blink I am standing in front of him moving almost as fast as my Father can. He still looks a little dazed and I put my hands on his upper arms.

"Neji, you're back. I am so glad." His eyes clear a bit when he looks at me and that calm composed look melts into a small smile. I can't think. I don't think. I just move and I am kissing him, my eyes still open, still looking into his beautiful white eyes.I can feel the warmth of his lips against mine. I can smell the blood that hasn't been wiped away from his chin. His eyes widen in shock and I realize what I have done. I let his arms go and pull back quickly.

"Shit, shit, shit," with every spoken curse I take a step back. I didn't mean to do that. I didn't want to do that in front thousands of shinobi, my ex-best friend, my teachers, my dad, the former Hokage' and the enemy. He's still looking at me with wide eyed open mouthed shock and if it weren't for the circumstances I would laugh to see a look like that on the ever cool Hyuuga. Hinata is still standing there next to him looking at me sadly and I can't help but feel sorry remembering her confession during my fight with Pein. She shakes her head and mouths the words 'It's okay' at me.

I can see the Bastard looking at me with shock and anger. I can understand the shock but what the hell does he have to be angry about. Dad looks incredulous and Kakashi suspiciously looks like he already knew. Then again knowing him he probably did, it wouldn't surprise me.

"Naruto? Son, we need to go."

"Right." Damn it I've blocked out everything around me and now I can hear the battle between Hashirama and Madara. Need to get my head back in the fight so I push everything to the back of my mind. I don't have time to worry or try to fix the damage I just did.

"I'm sorry Neji," I tell him and turn to follow my dad and Kakashi but turn back once more. I don't want to leave them like this but I don't have much of a choice.

"Go Naruto-Kun, me and Sakura will take things from here." Hinata says and I just nod.

"Oi Bastard lets go, we got work to do." I take off in the direction of dad and Kakashi. The Bastard catches up to me and matches my speed as we race toward the sounds of fighting. I can see him open his mouth and cut him off before he can utter a word.

"Don't." It comes out a growl and I pick up my speed to get away from him.

In the end we won. The battle was hell even with me, the Bastard and the former Hokage fighting him, Madara was a pain in the ass. The rest of the alliance took care of the Zetsu's and because of him we still lost too many good shinobi, but not nearly as many as we would have if not for Obito. I beat Sasuke finally. We fought and I brought him down. Now he's coming back but like I said before I could really care less. I've got too much on my plate to worry over what my ex-best friend is doing. Now it's back to rebuild the village. So much damage and so many lost lives but we all made new friends and family.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I am working on making the chapters longer I hate when they're less than 3k words. I hope you all enjoy this chapter and I have more surprises in store for the next chapter. Thank you to all who read, review and fav/follow I appreciate all of you.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters.**

**Chapter 2**

_In the end we won. The battle was hell even with me, the Bastard and the former Hokage fighting him, Madara was a pain in the ass. The rest of the alliance took care of the Zetsu's and because of him we still lost too many good shinobi, but not nearly as many as we would have if not for Obito. I beat Sasuke finally. We fought and I brought him down. Now he's coming back but like I said before I could really care less. I've got too much on my plate to worry over what my ex-best friend is doing. Now it's back to rebuild the village. So much damage and so many lost lives but we all made new friends and family._

You would think rebuilding the village would be the hardest part of coming back. Nope. Not the case. We have to figure out what to do with four newly returned former Hokage (which I may have a solution for is they will accept it), rebuild the village, build a medical school attached to the hospital on top of that, train with Tsunade-Ba-Chan since I have been announced as the next Hokage (Finally) and keep the bastard in line.

When the Jyuubi launched that Tailed Beast Bomb the direction of the village it hit close enough to destroy what had been rebuilt after Pein got through with his destruction. We also lost the rest of the counsel, Shikaku Nara, Inoichi Yamanaka and their relay team. So I'm thinking that the four former Hokage will make a good new counsel, they all have the villages best interest at heart, the only problem I can foresee in doing this is they all died in their prime I doubt any of them want to be cooped up in the village like the last counsel. I guess all I can do is make the suggestion and let them and Ba-Chan figure the rest out.

Ino is taking over her father's place in the Intelligence Division and since she is also a proficient Medic-Nin she will also be teaching in her spare time. Sakura was appointed head of the Hospital by Tsunade and when I take over as Hokage Tsunade and Shizune will be traveling from village to village to train who she can and send the rest here to be trained. Shikamaru has become to me what Shizune is to Tsunade only better and smarter. If I didn't already love Neji I probably would have fallen for Shika. He was there for me through so much.

He's become my best friend, my advisor and my confidante. After he pulled me out of my depression when Ero-Sennin died we started spending a lot more time together. I have to blame a lot of my personality changes on him. I'm still not sure if that's a good thing or not but people seem to appreciate it so…

* * *

Shaking off his thoughts he continued walking down the road while going over the scroll in his hands trying to prioritize what to bring up with the Hokage first. He let out a muffled grunt when he walked in to someone and stumbled back a couple steps.

"I'm so sor-ry," he finished brokenly when he say who he bumped into. "Uchiha, sorry I wasn't paying attention, if you'll excuse me I have to go." A pale hand shot out to grab his arm as he went to walk around the dark hair teen.

"Dobe."

His head snapped to the other man, his eyes as cold as ice. "Do not call me that. I am no longer an idiot, moron or dead last. Address me by my name or not at all because I won't answer to anything else."

"Naruto," the raven said monotonously. "Are you ever going to speak to me again or are you just going to keep avoiding me?"

"I have nothing left to say to you. You didn't want to listen to me all the times I tried to speak to me so now I'm doing you a favor, you'll never have to hear me say that we have a bond or that your my best friend because guess what you haven't been a friend or otherwise in a long time and I've let our bond go since you were so damn determined to sever it. Now let go of me." He said and watched as he opened his mouth to reply but was interrupted by an ANBU appearing out of now where.

"Naruto-Sama an urgent message just arrived for you from Amegakure."

"Boar, how many times do I have to tell you guys to drop the honorifics and thank you? Take care." He said with a wave and looked at the scroll curiously before opening it.

* * *

Sasuke and the four man ANBU team that were assigned to trail him in the village watched the blonde as he read the scroll. They watched as his eyes got wider with every line read and a multitude of emotions passed over his face before settling on excitement. They started to get a little worried when he started pacing back and forth rereading the scroll in one hand while tugging on his bangs with the other and muttering to himself the whole time.

"Sparrow you and your team get out here." He yelled. "I need you to send two of your team to get Kakashi and Shikamaru and have them meet us in the Hokage's office immediately. Also tell both of them if they take more than 10 minutes to get there I will come find them and use a beast bomb on their asses."

The ANBU captain signaled for two of his team to carry out the request and turned back to the blonde. "Sparrow, you and the Uchiha are coming with me." The teen took to the roof tops and sped off to the Hokage Tower. The other two followed behind both very curious at what the scroll contained to get the blonde so riled up.

When they got to the office doors they waited off to the side while Naruto slammed them open yelling in the process. "Ba-Chan I have something urgent for you to take a look at," they watched as he ducked a flying paper weight without missing a step. "Hey Dad what are you doing here?" After the flying object hit the far wall they felt it was safe to enter the office behind him and close the doors.

"Brat I told you not to call me that," she protested as she took the scroll from him.

"I'm helping Tsunade-Hime with some paper work," the former Yondaime replied while reading over her shoulder. The other two's curiosity grew when both Tsunade and Minato's eyes widened in shock. She jerked her eyes back up to the boy in front of her who was grinning at her and bouncing in place.

"This isn't a trap?" He shook his head no. "You're sure? How do you know?"

"She must have helped write it because no one but those two would know except you, dad, Kakashi-Sensei and Shikamaru. And the only reason you four know is because I told you." He stated as Kakashi came in through the window in his usual style and there was a knock at the door, when opened showed a lazy Shikamaru. "So Ba-Chan?" He pleaded.

"So what?" She said mischievously.

"Ba-Chan," he whined at her which caused her to smile. He may have changed quite a bit over the past couple of years but some things would never change. She chuckled as he grew impatient.

"Oh alright. You four now have a C Rank mission to Amegakure leaving immediately."

"Hokage-Sama are you going to tell us what the mission is?" Kakashi asked for once not reading his book. He watched her look to his former blonde student who shook his head with a grin. "It's a confirmation mission for now and Naruto will be leading the team. It will be Naruto, Shikamaru, Kakashi, Sasuke and Neji. He has all pertinent information. I'll leave the rest to you brat."

"Okay pack for at least a week I'm not sure how long this will take since it'll take us two days to get there. Sparrow you won't need the uniform for this mission. We'll meet at the gates in an hour and Kakashi-Sensei if you're late, when we get back from this mission I will sic Gai on you." He warned the older man.

"Right. Well I'd best be off then." He Shunshined out of the office.

"Naruto I'll follow you home real quick before you have to leave. Tsunade-Hime I'll be back in an hour."

"That's fine. Be careful brat and I'll see you when you get back."

"Do you want me to?" Minato asked his son.

"No let me I need the practice but I'm getting better. Okay I'll see you guys in a bit and don't drink too much while I'm gone Ba-Chan." He grabbed his father's arm and waved before using Hiraishin to teleport out.

"Did the Dobe just…." He let the sentence trail off. He looked around at the various glares thrown his way. Shikamaru just scoffed and started to walk out of the office.

"Keep my brat out of trouble Shikamaru." She told the lazy ninja who just chuckled and shook his head. Naruto and trouble went hand in hand and it was hard as hell to keep him out of it once he found it. The ANBU moved his mask to the side to reveal a scowling Neji.

"There was a reason he said what he did to you. You might want to take that to heart and think before you speak." He said and Shunshined away leaving a thoughtful Uchiha behind to ponder their words. He left the office silently to pack for the mission. He wasn't allowed out of the village unless Naruto had a mission and then he had to accompany him because they didn't trust him and they knew Naruto was the only person strong enough to take him down if he ever felt the need again to get revenge on the village.

* * *

An hour later Naruto was the first at the gates waiting for his team. Sasuke was the next to show up and find Naruto conversing with the gate guards Kotetsu and Izumo as animatedly as he remembered. Shikamaru and Neji showed up next almost at the same time and as usual Kakashi was last but not late this time.

"Let's head out guys." He said waving good bye to the two Chuunins. They took to the trees. Naruto and Shikamaru in the lead with Sasuke in the middle followed by Neji and Kakashi. They ran in silence for the most part only really speaking when they had to stop to rest. They called it a night around dusk and set up camp.

After they had eaten Kakashi went up and sat on a tree branch to read and take first watch. Sasuke jumped up and sat next to him and watched Shikamaru and Naruto. They were sitting back to back next to the fire leaning on each other their weight balancing them. Shikamaru had his head leaning back against Naruto's shoulder seeming like he was asleep and Naruto was drawing a seal on a scroll from the looks of it.

"What's up with those two? I don't remember them ever being that close." He asked Kakashi. The silver haired Jounin looked over at the two boys fondly and closed his book.

"Hmm. I'll have to go back to the Chuunin exams for that story. While I was training you during that month Naruto got Jiraiya one of the legendary Sannin to train him. After your brother put you in the hospital he went with Jiraiya to get Tsunade to come back to be Hokage and to heal both you and me. When you left Jiraiya took him on the road for a training trip for a little over 2 years. Jiraiya became like a grandfather figure to Naruto. He loved him like family. Then Tsunade sent Jiraiya on a mission that got him killed. Naruto was devastated, he went into a severe depression. No one could get him out of it not even Iruka who was another person that's like family to him. Shikamaru is the only one who could get through to him. They've been inseparable since. He's a rock for Naruto and they understand each other because Shikamaru lost Asuma shortly before Jiraiya died. He's everything to him except maybe a maid, cook and lover." He told the Uchiha.

"They were once upon a time. Lovers I mean." Neji said startling the two men who didn't realize he had snuck up on them.

"Really? How the hell did they keep that quiet enough that I didn't even know? How do you know anyways?" Kakashi asked suspiciously.

"I think I'm the only one who does know and I found out by accident one day when the Hokage asked me to deliver a scroll and I didn't think anything of going to his bedroom window one morning. They were sleeping together and I left before they could wake up. They don't know I know and I plan to keep it that way. They aren't together anymore that I know of, now they're just very comfortable friends."

"Do you feel anything for him?" Sasuke asked.

"Of course I do. I've loved that dense blonde for years and I didn't know he felt anything similar until Obito brought me back."

"Aren't you jealous?"

"No. Shikamaru was there for him when no one, not even myself, was there. I can't fault either of them finding comfort from someone who is going through a similar tragedy. I am happy that Shikamaru made him happy and helped him through a tough time."

"That was well said and very wise of you Neji. It's exactly how you should feel when you love someone like that. You always only want them to be happy no matter what. Have you talked to him about it yet?"

"No we've both been so busy and I know he's nervous. I'm trying to be patient and let him come to me in his own time but I'm thinking that if he doesn't say anything by the time we get home if there's a chance I'll just have to do something about that." He said with a smile at the older man and jumped down to go sit in front of Naruto who looked up at him with a soft smile.

Sasuke felt a small stab of hurt when he saw Naruto look at Neji like that. He'd seen that look once on Naruto's face and it was directed at himself. He was starting to form a picture of what he may have given up on in his quest for revenge. He saw Naruto nudge Shikamaru who sat up and he called out to Kakashi and Sasuke.

"Sensei I'm going to send this with a clone in Bijuu mode to the Ame border. He'll be much faster than us and by the time we wake up I can use Hiraishin to cut a day off our travel."

"Can you do it at that distance?" Kakashi asked his former student.

Naruto nodded at him. "Ya I'll have to go into Bijuu Mode for it to be possible."

"Okay. Might as well rest up."

* * *

The next morning he woke everyone up since he was last watch. They ate and packed up camp. He release his clone and found that the scroll was open and ready in a clearing. He went into Bijuu Mode and put a chakra arm on each of his teammate's shoulders before activating the Jutsu. Once in the clearing he let go of his Bijuu Mode and grabbed the scroll and sealing it away.

"We should bring you on every mission. That makes things so much easier." Shikamaru said around a yawn.

"You're just a lazy ass." Naruto laughed and bumped Shika's shoulder who bumped him back. Watching the two of them, Sasuke couldn't help but to feel a small pang of jealousy at their easy comradery. He didn't understand how Neji didn't feel the same way but the long haired teen was just smiling at their joking around.

"Shouldn't take long to get where we need to go, just follow me." The blonde told the group and ran toward the village not too far in the distance. When they reached the tallest tower in the village they went in and climbed to the top. At the top Naruto actually stopped and knocked on the door. They heard a women's voice call out for them to enter. They followed him in to see two figures in the room.

"Konan, Nagato. How the hell are you?" Naruto said with a bright smile.


	4. Chapter 4

**A\N: So this ended up being fluffy. More so than I meant it to be. The only warning for this chapter is guys kissing and maybe a little bit of Sasuke bashing not sure if what I'm doing can be considered bashing but the warning is there just in case. I appreciate all you who follow/fav this story. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. **

**Chapter 3**

"_Konan, Nagato. How the hell are you?" Naruto said with a bright smile._

Konan jumped up from where she was sitting and ran to Naruto giving him a hug and a smacking kiss on the cheek. He looked at her laughing. "What was that for?"

"You did it! You kept your promise."

" Of course I did. You doubted me?" He mock glared at her and Nagato chuckled at their banter. "There is still a lot of work to do on the alliance but the base is there and we have something to build on now." He told her before turning to the other man. "Nagato I must say you look so much better than the last time I saw you. No more wasting yourself away," he told the red head wagging a finger at him. "Konan, if he tries that shit again beat him." She giggled and nodded.

The other four men in the room watched with a mixture of emotions. Neji was amused, Shikamaru looked like he was bored but interested, Kakashi looked how he always does and though he didn't show it Sasuke was confused and curious. Kakashi, Neji and Shikamaru had all heard the story about when he fought Pein so even though they hadn't met the two, they did know the names. Kakashi cleared his throat bringing Naruto's attention back to the team he had forgotten about.

Naruto spun around then face palmed when he realized he had forgot the others he coughed and rubbed at the back of his head in embarrassment. "OH…Sorry guys. So guys this is Nagato and Konan. Nagato and Konan this is Shikamaru Nara, Neji Hyuuga, Kakashi Hatake and Sasuke Uchiha." He told the duo point to each person as he said their name. Nagato gave him a questioning look to which Naruto nodded and smiled then he started humming thoughtfully.

"Hey Nagato you don't think…?"

"I would assume so considering what I've been hearing."

"Oh this is gonna be so good. Well it could be bad in a way too but I am going to enjoy this so much." Naruto said chuckling. Shikamaru lost his bored countenance as he put the pieces together. See he and Naruto had grown close over the years and the blonde had a tendency to tell him everything and he didn't mind really even though he complained a lot. So putting the pieces together was easy and he knew the blonde was plotting something that had to do with two Uchiha brothers, especially if one was supposed to be dead and now wasn't. He looked around and was surprised no one else had figured it out yet. Yes he might be a genius and smarter then everyone here but the other three weren't stupid by any means.

"Naruto, you wouldn't." He looked over his shoulder at the lazy teen with that fox like grin that said 'I am going to pull the best prank ever' and just nodded happily. "So troublesome." He said with a smile and a shake of his head. Well things would never be boring around him that was for sure and he mentally wish Neji luck.

Neji on the other hand was now feeling a slight case of jealousy. He didn't know what was going on, and despite Kakashi and Sasuke also not knowing, he distinctly felt left out. It didn't help knowing at one time Naruto and Shikamaru were lovers and had a closer tie than he did with the blonde. "Naruto?" The teen shifted his eyes from Shikamaru to Neji in apology.

"I'll tell you later." He assure the older boy before Kakashi spoke."

"I hate to interrupt but we need to know what happened and what you two plan on doing now?"

Konan went back to sit by Nagato's side as they looked back over the group. "Well we woke up where we died or were sealed in my case that was about three weeks ago. I came back here to find Konan and the villagers decided to keep us as the leaders. We were here for a couple of weeks before one more showed up and then we found another a couple days later."

"Who?" Naruto questioned. He nodded to Konan, she went to the door and made a paper bird. She opened the door to let it out. They only had to wait a few minutes before a man with spikey orange hair entered and Naruto's mouth dropped and he turned back to Nagato and Konan. "Is that Yahiko?" They both nodded and smiled. "Hey Yahiko, it's nice to be able to meet you." He said and proceeded to introduce himself and his teammates.

"I have to thank you Naruto Uzumaki."

"Huh. For what?"

"You have done what we strived so hard to do for so long."

"I…umm…I didn't do it all by myself." He said self-consciously.

"Still you deserve thanks. None of this would have been possible if it hadn't been for you." He ducked his head in embarrassment still not used to getting praised.

"I have one more thing to show you before we continue Naruto." Nagato said and this time Konan went to the door without prompt and did the same thing as she did before. After a moment he could feel a familiar chakra signature.

"No, it's not possible." He whispered shaking his head back and forth. His teammates looked at the blonde teen worriedly when they saw the anguish on his face and his eyes fill with tears. They all spun to the door as it opened and stared wide eyed at the man who stepped through the door. Naruto didn't move but he felt the presence move close until it was almost directly behind him. "Jiraiya," It was almost inaudible.

"Brat, since when do you call me by name?" He choked on a sob when he heard that loud booming voice. He spun too fast to comprehend and buried his face in the older man's chest. He wrapped his arms around the man and fisted his hands in his shirt. "I've missed you so much and you have no idea how bad I want to kick your ass right now for dying."

He let go of the older man and looked up smiling when he heard that loud laugh. "Please don't I'm going to have a hard enough time fending off Tsunade when I see her. Maybe it would be best I stay she just might kill me herself."

"Don't you dare if I came back without you and she knew you were alive she'd kill me. Hell at this rate when you go back she might just tie you up to keep you from going anywhere again." He told the Sannin.

"Hmm…Might be worth going back for that then." He said with a smile. Naruto laughed at the perverts words. Some things never change. He wiped his face and looked around the room noting the various smiles, his eyes settled on Shikamaru.

"You know what this could mean right Naruto?" The lazy teen said.

"Asuma." Shikamaru smiled wider. "You understand we don't know who got brought back and what their intentions might be. This could be a big problem the only good thing right now is we know Obito and Madara won't be back. I wanted to stay the night here then try and pass through Suna to see if Gaara has had any stragglers but I think we should head back now and talk to Tsunade, see what she wants to do."

"Agreed."

"Nagato what do you plan to do now?"

"For you? Anything."

"Would you be willing to sign a treaty and help us with any missing Nin if we need it?"

"Yes."

"Okay. I'll have to have the Hokage write something up. I'm still in training so I can't write up documents like that yet. I wish we could stay longer but I'm sure you understand the urgency." Nagato nodded and all three came to stand before him. Konan gave him another hug and told him to come back some time. Yahiko shook his hand and said it was nice to meet him agreeing with Konan. Nagato shook his hand but spoke before he could pull away.

"Thank you for forgiving me."

"I couldn't really hate someone for giving up their life for others. I should thank you also for bringing them back."

"It was the least I could do after everything I did. Take care and if you ever need anything just ask. Oh tell him I said hi if you see him and let him know he has a place here if he wants it."

"Will do. You guys take care and Konan keep them out of trouble. Bye." He turned back to the group. "Everyone ready? Ero-Sennin you ready to go home?" They gave the affirmative and left the office each saying a good bye as they went. When they reached the outskirts of the village Naruto stopped the group for a minute. I want to stop and camp at the border to River and Fire Country. There's something I want to check out." When he had finished they took to the trees again with Naruto leading and Jiraiya next to him followed by Shikamaru and Neji, Sasuke was behind them and Kakashi covered the rear.

They listened to Naruto tell Jiraiya everything that happened since his death. Even though Shikamaru had heard it all before he still listened and was happy to see the Blonde so animated. The others hadn't heard the whole story so they all listened intently. They reached the clearing near the borders around suppertime. Before he started to help set up camp he sat in the middle of the clearing and gathered Natural energy to him and slipped into Sage Mode. He stood again and made four shadow clones. "You know what to do. Find him let him know where we are then dispel yourself." They took off in all different directions and he let his Sage Mode fade. He pulled out the scroll from before and went into Bijuu Mode and made one more clone to take to Konoha.

"So you learned how to control the Kyuubi brat." Kakashi laughed and Jiraiya looked at him.

"He didn't just learn how to control him, he's friends with him." Kakashi told the older man.

"Hey, Kurama's not that bad once you get to know him." Jiraiya looked at him surprised and Sasuke scoffed. Naruto turned to glare at the younger Uchiha. "Well he wouldn't be very nice to you now would he, you are an Uchiha after all and personally I don't blame him," He turned away from the raven and spoke to Neji. "You up for some fishing there's a river not too far from here?"

"Sure." He replied.

Naruto turned back to Jiraiya before walking away. "I'll tell you about it when we get back." The two teens disappeared into the woods towards the river while Shikamaru went to gather firewood and the rest stayed behind to set up the tents.

They didn't speak until they reached the river bank. Naruto took off his jacket and peeled his fishnet tee shirt off, throwing both to the side where it was dry. He toed off his shoes and rolled his pants up to his knees. Neji watched all of this with interest. He had never seen the blonde with as little clothing on as he did now and he appreciated the view. Toned muscles flexed under golden skin and wrapped around a lean frame. The sun seemed to love him and his blue eyes looked like they were sparkling from the reflection of the water. He sighed and shook off his poetic thoughts. Laughing at himself silently he couldn't believe he actually thought that. They weren't his only thoughts but the other ones he didn't dare dwell on just yet.

"What do you need me to do?" He asked as the other boy waded into the water.

"Relax and talk to me. This can get damn boring." He said. When he was knee deep in the water he stopped and turned so he could see Neji, who was sitting cross legged beneath a tree not very far away from the waterline, without turning his head. He spread his legs shoulder width apart and bent them slightly. He slipped his hands under the water and stilled his body. Fishing this way was much easier since going through Sage training but when he got bored he tended to meditate without realizing it so he was thankful he had the long haired teen there with him.

"Were you going to tell me what was going on back there with Shikamaru?"

"Oh yeah, almost forgot about that. I'm sure if you put that big brain of your to use you'll figure it out but you know how Nagato was the one controlling the Six Paths of Pain that I fought. Well Konan disappeared not long after that fight, she left the Akatsuki and I thought she just went underground to keep out of the way. The way Nagato talked about them coming back it sounded like she might have been killed but I don't know by who and Yahiko was killed by Hanzo a long time ago during one of the wars. They are all back so that means all of the Akatsuki may be back also including Itachi."

"How did we not think of that?"

If Naruto could have he would have shrugged. "Shock or surprise I guess. I had prior knowledge about Nagato and Konan but not Jiraiya or Yahiko. I had thought about it on the way to Ame and you know how Shikamaru's brain works so that no surprise."

"True. So what are you planning?"

"Nothing. I don't have to even though Itachi owes me he's not happy about Sasuke. Itachi gave up too much for his brother including his life and Sasuke threw it all away."

"What do you mean? What did he give up?"

Naruto explained the circumstances behind the Uchiha Massacre and what Itachi had done. "Sasuke killed Itachi yes but If he didn't want to die Sasuke wouldn't have held a chance to defeat his brother. You can't say anything to anyone about what I just told you. Only a handful of people know the truth and Itachi asked me not to tell anyone else. I will tell you what you want to know because I don't feel comfortable lying to you and I will try to be as honest as I can."

"I understand I won't say anything."

"Thank you."

When he caught enough fish for everyone, he washed his hands and doused his hair in the tepid water before wading his way back to Neji. The long haired teen had been lounging under the tree and cleaning the fish as they were thrown his way. When he finished the last fish he went to join his teammate after shedding his own shirt and shoes. He went and stood next to his friend who was now just standing in the water watching the slowly sinking sun. He pull the band out of his hair and dunked his whole head under the water. As warm as the day was and all the traveling they had been doing, the water felt good on his overly warm face.

He came up from the water slowly and fisted his hair to wring it out before it got his shorts wet. Naruto turned from watching the sunset to watch Neji. Creamy pale skin over a seeming lanky frame. The blonde could attest to the fact that the older teen may look fragile he was anything but. He watched the other wring out his long black hair with slender elegant fingers.

Neji was certainly attractive maybe even beautiful but Naruto couldn't help but admire how far he'd come since the Chuunin exams. He smiled to himself remembering how things had been back then. Neji turned and caught the small smile on his lips and the far away look in his eyes.

"What are you thinking about?"

His eyes cleared as he focused back on Neji and he smiled wider. "The Chuunin exams."

"You know, half way through our fight I actually started listening to you but I was fighting so hard against what you were saying even if it was logical. I never did apologize for assuming I had it worse than you or anyone else. So I'm sorry and I thank you for knocking some sense into me. I don't think I'd be here if it weren't for you."

They stood side by side quietly for a moment, close enough that their bare arms were brushing each other as they breathed. "You really shouldn't thank me or apologize. No one was supposed to know and I didn't want any of you to find out, well I was scared for any of you to find out. On top of that I was just so mad at you all I could think about was kicking you ass." He finally replied smirking.

Neji chuckled. "I deserved it. I think it was probably the only way to get through to me and I'm happy it was you." He said somewhat ashamed at how badly he acted back then. "Naruto, are you ever going to talk to me?"

"What do you mean? I have been talking to you." He said frowning.

"Don't do that Naruto. You know exactly what I mean and just because I may not know you as well as some of the others doesn't mean I'm stupid or blind."

"Sorry," The reply was muttered. "I'm sorry I kissed you in front of everyone I honestly didn't mean to. I was going to tell you how I felt eventually and I don't expect you to reciprocate my feelings. I'm surprised you haven't hit me yet…" He let the sentence trail off after he realized he was babbling.

Neji grabbed his wrist and turned them so that they were facing each other. "How do you feel?" He asked not letting go of his wrist. He watched the other teen rake his free hand through his hair. When he was silent for too long Neji grabbed his other wrist as well and held him in a firm grip afraid he would try to get away. He was going to wait until they got home for this conversation but they were alone now and he felt like he had waited long enough. "Naruto, please tell me. I promise I'm not mad or anything like that but I need to know."

"I never did hate you even after what you had done to Hirata. After hearing your story I started to feel a comradery, I guess. You were so much like me. I had something sealed in me because of who I was and when I was born, you had a seal on you because of who you were born too. We both were fighting against a life we had no choice in, both of use trying to gain recognition. Later on you told me about your father and I didn't know it then but both of our fathers sacrificed their lives for what they believed in and we were both orphans."

"I'm not sure when the feelings changed. For a while after the exams I just kept thinking I wanted to be friends with you, let you know you weren't alone. I thought about telling you about Kurama. But by the time I had a chance to actually approach you Sasuke had left the village and we had the retrieval mission and then I left with Ero-Sennin. When I saw you again when we had to rescue Gaara. The only thought I had was…" He stopped, really not wanting to embarrass himself further.

Neji squeezed the wrists still in his possession gently. "You thought what?" He asked quietly.

Naruto looked up and let his eyes trace Neji's refined features. He hesitated before he spoke again. He might as well say it all since he was talking anyway. "You were beautiful," he grinned, "even if you were annoyed with me and Lee." He dropped his gaze back to the pale hands still caging his. "It was then I knew something changed. I nerved stopped thinking about you when I was gone with Jiraiya, I just didn't think too hard on why you were always in my thoughts. I don't know exactly how I feel yet, I do know I want to be close to you. I want to know everything about you and I want to be with you. When you died in my arms…" His breath became ragged when he thought about Neji dying. "I thought my heart was breaking and I regretted not taking more time to spend with you even if it was just as a friend. When I saw you standing there with Hinata, alive again, my body moved without me even thinking about it."

"I don't regret kissing you, I'm just sorry I did it in front of everyone and I'm sorry if I did it while you were seeing some one else. For a week or two after the war ended I was thinking a bit selfishly, thinking that I had a chance and we could be together but I forgot that your part of a clan. They will expect you to marry a girl if you're not already with someone and have heirs." He stopped talking not sure what else to say and kept his eyes averted to their hands. Neji hadn't said anything in the three weeks since the end of the war and he hadn't done anything against him but every time they had been around each other there had been other people with them. Now that they were alone he didn't know what the older teen would do or say.

While Neji had been holding his wrists he still could hold on to a small bit of hope, when he let go and didn't say anything, his eyes blurred with tears and for a split second he was devastated. Then those warm pale hands cupped his whisker marked cheeks and tilted his head up so they were looking each other in the eye.

Neji was ecstatic not just happy but joyful. His heart pounded in his cheats with every sentence the teen before him spoke. It took every bit of self-control he had to keep his hands in place and not just pull him in so that he could show him just how much he want to be with him also. He knew that this was not the time for that so he did what he could. When he looked into those sad watery blue eyes he knew he'd do anything to keep him smiling and laughing.

He placed his lips against Naruto's in a chaste kiss, moving their lips together in a soft caress. He kept his eyes open to gauge the others reaction. Naruto's eyes widened slightly before softening and closing slowly. Then Neji saw the tears leak out from under closed lids. He wiped them away with his thumbs and pulled back worriedly. "Why are you crying?"

He stopped worrying when the blonde boy opened his eyes and smiled. "Happy," was all he said before grabbing the older boys face and pulling him into a much more passionate kiss than before. Damp lips slid together sensually, tongues danced together instead of battled and hands grabbed bare skin sure to leave finger sized bruises later.

They pulled apart panting for breath. It took a moment but they realized that it was almost fully dark. Neji reluctantly released Naruto from his tight grasp. "We have to head back."

"Yeah." Came the dejected reply. He had turned away from Neji before he replied so the older boy grabbed his hand and ran his thumb over the scarred knuckles until he turned back to face him.

"Hey, I know how you feel but remember we're on a mission and that has to come first. I know you sent your clone to the village with that scroll so we'll be back home by tomorrow evening at the latest. We both know that we won't have much time when we get back but I'll spend every free moment I have with you and we'll talk more then. Okay?" Naruto smiled in return and Neji gave him one final kiss before trudging back to their clothes.

Naruto put his fishnet tee back on and unrolled his pants to let them dry out but opted to carry his shoes and jacket since it was still fairly warm. Neji put all his stuff back on and grabbed the fish to bring back to camp. Before they reached the rest of the group Neji stopped Naruto one more time with a hand on his upper arm. Naruto turned looking at the other teen questioningly.

"I'm sorry. I kissed you and said nothing to what you told me. I just wanted you to know that I feel the same way."

Naruto raised his hand and dressed his cheek with just his fingertips. "I know, you didn't have to say anything. No one has ever looked at me the way you did." He smiled and wrapped his hand around the older boy's neck pulling him into a quick but tender kiss. He turned back toward the camp and continued walking Neji following behind with a smile of his own. Neither teen noticed the person sitting on a branch not too far away watching them.

When they entered the camp Shikamaru, Karachi and Jiraiya all noted the slightly red rimmed eyes on their favorite blonde but let it go in the face of his happy countenance. They grabbed a few of the extra beaches collected and speared the fish to cook over the fire. They took seats around the fire and Naruto resumed telling his former Sensei the tale. They paused long enough to eat, Sasuke showing up shortly before the fish had finished cooking and Naruto picked back up again.

He paused again when one of his clones dispelled himself. He smiled and dispelled the rest. Neji was the one who spoke up. "How long?"

"Very soon. Much soon than I had thought." He stopped finally paying attention to Neji who was struggling to untangle his now dry hair. "Would you like some help?" Neji shrugged and went to sit in front the younger boy. He reached back and handed over the brush he always brought with him just for this reason. He continued speaking only a bit more distracted this time as he concentrated on the task in front of him.

After getting all the knots out of his hair, he started putting into a loose braid to keep it from getting tangled again during the night. He was so distracted he almost didn't hear when Sasuke decided to speak.

"You look like a girl at a sleepover." He smirked as he said it but glared when he didn't get the reaction he thought he would.

"Maybe but I had a good reason to learn how to do hair like this. When we got back to the village I helped rebuild the orphanage first. On my days off or in between missions I go play with the kids and help out with the babies. One day a few of the little girls wanted to play dress up and I'm not going to tell a child no. I let them do my hair and they were happy I was willing to play with them but they were disappointed I didn't know how to do a girls hair. The next day I went to Sakura and I no and had them teach me how." He smiled remembering how excited the two girls were when he went to them. He held a hand out over Neji's shoulder when he was done and got the hair tie. He finished tying the end and gave the braid a sharp tug.

Neji was surprised at how relaxed he was. He wasn't sure if it was because of Naruto or having his hair played with or a combination of the two but he wasn't going to complain about it and he was sure this wouldn't be the last time he had the blonde do this for him. He was very passed at Sasuke though for the comment he made but Naruto surprised him again when he told them how and why he could do hair so well. If there hadn't been so many people around he was pretty sure he would have jumped his companion right then.

He got another surprise and learned something else about himself when his sunny blonde decided to tug on his hair. It sent a sharp pain through his scalp which turned into a spark that travelled down his spine and made him suck in a harsh breath. He turned his head to the side and aimed a look at the boy behind him.

No one but Naruto noticed Neji's tense posture and he thought maybe he'd done something wrong until he turned around. The barely concealed lust filled gaze caused him to chuckle. He leaned forward and put his lips against the other boy's ear and whispered. "Bad move Neji, you should have tried to hide that better. Now I know and if we were alone this would have gone a lot differently." He ended the sentence with a sharp nip of the older boy's ear. Neji had to suppress a groan at the husky voice and sharp teeth. All he could do was spit out a harshly whispered, "fuck."

Naruto laughed loudly. Everyone stopped what they were doing to look at the two. No one asked though judging by the slight and unusual flush on the older teen's face. "You are evil." He said and Naruto gave him innocent eyes with a shit eating grin.

"You'll learn, that's not the worst I could do." Neji suppressed a shudder at the images that sentence conjured up and had to push them to the back of him mind or he'd have a harder (no pun intended but literally) problem to deal with. He couldn't wait to get back to the village before but now he wanted to rush it.

He looked back at Naruto when the blonde called out to someone hidden. "You can come out now."

A figure appeared behind him and he tilted his head back to look up at the man and smiled brightly. "Itachi, it's good to see you again. How are you?"


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Here's the chapter hope you all like it. Not much to say this time around unless everyone wants to hear me rant which I doubt. Thanks to all of you who have reviewed and follow/faved.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters.**

**Chapter 4**

_A figure appeared behind him and he tilted his head back to look up at the man and smiled brightly. "Itachi, it's good to see you again. How are you?"_

Itachi looked down at the blonde and gave him a small smile. "Naruto, it's good to see you again." He looked around the clearing. "Kakashi, Jiraiya." He nodded to them in greeting. The two older shinobi nodded back the older looking a bit weary. "Little brother good to see you're not as foolish as I thought you were." The older Uchiha stated then decided to amend his statement when he spied, the Hyuuga and Naruto so close together, out of the corner of his eye.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" The younger Uchiha asked.

"You will figure it out eventually." He said dismissing his brother and looked down to find the blonde grinning up at him. "May I borrow you for a moment? I wish to speak with you privately?"

"Sure Itachi." Naruto said and placed a hand on the shoulder of the boy sitting in front of him. He squeezed gently and stood following the older man to the edge of the clearing where they would be seen but not heard.

Sasuke went to stand and follow the two but was held in place by a hand on his shoulder. He looked over at the silver haired Jounin and glared at him. "Sit down Sasuke and let them talk."

"Why?"

"What do you think they are talking about? Your brother probably pulled him away because Naruto knows the story of the massacre and not only that, he knows your teammate better than any of us not including you and I'm sure he's not very happy with you. They have fought and spoken to each other more than you know. Naruto will try and get him back in the village."

"Why would he do that? My brother tried to kill him."

"So did you, or did you forget that. Besides this is Naruto were talking about. He chased after you for years trying to get you to come back and you were a traitor. Your brother though is loyal to the village, how much harder do you think he'd try to get someone like that back in the village?" He shut up and relaxed back in his seat not wanting to admit it but his former Sensei had a point. So he just watched the two converse.

…

"Who knows?"

"Still the same people except," he tilted his head toward the group. "Shikamaru Nara and Neji Hyuuga. I told Shikamaru because I was chosen as Tsunade's replacement as Hokage and he will be my closest advisor. Neji because we are in a relationship and I refuse to keep secrets from him. I gather that Kakashi-Sensei is telling Jiraiya right now because of the circumstances."

"I am surprised though I suppose I should not be."

"Why?"

"You have a strong sense of justice. I thought maybe that sense would override your promise to me. I thank you for keeping it."

"Don't think I didn't try to find a way around that promise. I still don't think it was fair you having to give up your life like that but I remembered and I didn't even tell Tsunade, I wasn't sure what she would do with the information and it was possible she would try to clear your name. I have only ever broken one promise and that was to myself."

"What promise was that if I may ask?"

"That I would never stop loving him, Sasuke, that maybe if I could keep loving him it would bring him out of the dark. But I couldn't keep that promise not for anyone even myself. If I hadn't broken that promise I would have lost myself and been dragged into the dark with him." He said sadly and lowered his head. He felt a warm hand on his shoulder and looked at the dark haired man standing in front of him.

"Forgive yourself Naruto. There was a reason why I said my brother is still a fool. He lost the best thing that could have happened to him in his life. The love you had for him could have saved him a lifetime of pain if he had allowed it. I am sorry to hear you say that but I am happy to see you with someone who will make you happy. You deserve that much after everything you've been through."

"You knew how I felt about him?"

"Of course. You do know who I am right?"

Naruto laughed. "There's that Uchiha arrogance."

"Not arrogance, confidence. I know who I am and what I can and cannot do."

"Well now I need to know what you want to do Itachi. Do you want to come back to the village? There are a couple of options if you do and if you don't we were just in Ame. Nagato, Konan and Yahiko are running the village and extend an invitation to you."

Itachi dropped his hand to his side and frowned thoughtfully before answering. "I am not sure. I miss the village but I'm not sure if I wish everyone to know what happened. I was so ready to die for what I had done and now that I'm back I feel…lost."

"Here is what I was thinking. If you really want to come back you can take up with the ANBU once again. No one would know you were back except a handful of people or any you want to know and you'd have time to get used to the village again. If the time ever came that you want to be out of the shadows you can make that choice. I can't say how the civilians would react to the news but I do know that everyone of my teammates here, while they may not condone what you did, they do understand that being loyal to the village and doing what ever it takes to keep it and the people within safe. That includes myself and I for one would like to see you back at home where you belong."

Itachi gave him a small smile when he paused. "I can't make any official decisions yet so if you don't want to take the chance of coming back with us just yet, why don't you head to Ame and see Nagato and Konan. I'll speak with Ba-Chan and send a message with whatever she decides and you can make your choice then."

"You have come a long way from the child that I first met. That option sound good I will go to Ame and await word from you then."

"Good, also I'm sure you've already thought it but since you're back and so are so many others, there's bound to be more. Akatsuke, I'm betting but others also since Jiraiya and Neji were never a part of them. So we may need you for your skills also." Itachi nodded indicating he had thought of that.

"Weather or not I come back to the village I would still be willing to help if the need arises. I May be apprehensive but it is still the place I call home and spent my life protecting." He stated.

"Well that's good to know but I stand by what I said before. I would like to see you back. Will you stay with us for a bit and catch up or are you going to leave right away?"

"I think I would like to sit for a little while." He said as they were walking back towards the group. Naruto was watching Itachi observe his teammates when noticed the older Uchiha's gaze linger on one person slightly longer than that rest. He was happy that he had the ability to read an Uchiha better than most.

"I think I see now." The blonde said mischievously.

"See what?"

"You have more incentive to come back now. I'll tell you something, if you want to get him to start talking bring up Shogi and I can assure you if you're interested he does like the same sex." He saw Itachi's eyes widen slightly and giggled. Itachi looked at him curiously. "You may be a genius but I can be very observant if I want to be."

"Well then I suppose I should listen to someone so wise and knowing." He said with a straight face, his eyes dancing with mirth. It turned into an outright smile when Naruto started laughing heartily. The older Uchiha watched him in amusement for a moment. "I feel special now I got humor and a smile. It's good to know there's a person under that blank face." Naruto said sobering a little but not losing his smile. They returned to walking back to the circle talking amicably about nothing in particular while the others watched in interest.

Sasuke sat seething in silence watching his brother and the blonde. In a matter of minutes Naruto had gotten more emotion out of Itachi than he had since before his older brother killed their clan. Thinking about what ever was going on between the Hyuuga, the blonde and his brother was making his stomach churn acidly.

Neji was watching Naruto fondly a small smile pasted to his face. He watched the many expression that passed over his face throughout the conversation and when Naruto looked sad and he couldn't go comfort him he was glad that Itachi offered a little bit of comfort. There was no reason he could see to be jealous of the interaction between the two, he personally knew what kind of effect the blonde had on people.

Shikamaru could only analyze the differences between the two. Naruto was attractive in a bright and sunny sort of way. The Uchiha though was beautiful in a moonlight and shadows way. The lazy teen couldn't help but be attracted and interested in him. Not only was he undeniably gorgeous but he had a brain on par with himself.

The duo made it back to the camp and sat with the others. Itachi took the initiative to introduce himself since he didn't before he had pulled Naruto away. Each of them catching Itachi and Jiraiya up on things they had missed while they had been dead. Even Sasuke talked in his monotonous way. Thinking about them being dead brought up another question Naruto had thought of but in all the excitement had forgotten.

"Hey Itachi, Ero-Sennin, I had thought to ask before but forgot till now but why didn't either of you come back or even contact us. I mean I understand why Itachi wouldn't but, Jiraiya, why didn't you?"

"When I woke up I was disoriented, in shock and I couldn't remember anything that had happened until about a week ago and when I did I stayed in Ame spying. Konan found me a couple of days ago and brought me to the tower where the three of them explained what they knew. I wanted to make sure they weren't a threat before I came back to the village." The Toad Sage explained.

"It happened the same way with me except I regained my memories a half a week earlier. I spent a lot of that time travelling around and listening to rumors for information about the war."

"I wonder why that happened. Neji how did you feel?"

"Same. Disorientation, shock I didn't think I had memory loss but I did struggle to organize my thoughts I just attributed it to the disorientation."

"Hmm. I think we'll have to talk to dad and the other Hokage to see what they felt."

"I have a theory but I want to investigate more before I say anything." Came the lazy drawl. Naruto let out a jaw cracking yawn, the events of the day finally catching up to him, and Itachi decided to move on for a while longer before making camp for the night. "If we find any of the others and they aren't a threat or don't want to return with us or their own village we'll send them Nagato's way so just let him know."

"As long as we don't run into Kisame than we'll be fine otherwise I'll just kill him on principle." Neji muttered, no one heard him but Naruto who just smiled at him.

"I'll be waiting to hear from you." The older Uchiha said and turned to walk away. They watched him disappear behind the tree line and sorted out watch duty, Neji decided to take first watch and the rest retired for the night.

The next morning Naruto found himself to be the first awake in the pre-dawn hours aside from the last watch person who happened to be Kakashi. He was lounging in a tree with his book perched in front of his face as usual. He look down at the blonde moving around. He pointed in the direction of the river indicating where he was going and Kakashi waved him off before returning back to his book. A few minutes later Sasuke got up from where he was laying a follow in the direction Naruto had gone. Kakashi watched and decided not to intervene his former student could take care of himself and judging by what Neji had told him about their last confrontation this was bound to happen sooner or later.

Naruto relieved himself and took off his jacket. Kneeling on the bank of the river he plunged his hands in the cool water to wash them and splash some water on his face to wake up and clear the last bit of sleep from his eyes. He felt Sasuke enter the small clearing and was stalling to see if he'd leave or not. Finally after a few minutes he got annoyed and stood turning to face the pale boy. "What do you want Sasuke?"

"You're hooking up with the Hyuuga now?"

"No." Sasuke let out an inaudible sigh of relief until he spoke again. "Dating or a relationship. Hooking up implies a meaningless attraction. This is something lasting and meaningful. Why do you care?"

"What happened to Sakura?" He asked dodging the question.

"I loved her but eventually I started falling for someone else and realized I had absolutely no chance with her so I let that love turn to that more of a sibling."

"Who?"

The blonde sighed in resignation. He didn't really want to do this now but it didn't seem like he had much of a choice. "You." Sasuke's eyes widened in surprise then he frowned.

"You said you thought of us as brothers."

"You're an idiot. Why don't you think about this; I had no parents, no siblings and no friends growing up. All I knew was hate, scorn and the little bit of kindness I received from Jiji. I didn't meet Iruka-Sensei until the Academy and we didn't become close until I passed the exam. I didn't know the difference between the love of a friend, a sibling or a lover and I hade no one to teach me. Parental and grandparent love was easier to figure out due to age but when it came to friends and comrades close to or my own age there was no distinction."

"After the fight with Haku things changed I didn't see you as just my rival anymore and I got confused. After the run in with your brother and you ended up in the hospital, I was terrified you'd never wake up again. Mastering the Rasengan seemed to be the only way to get Tsunade back to the village to heal you so when I made the bet with her it wasn't with her becoming the Hokage in mind. It was the fear that you'd never be there to fight with me, we wouldn't get stronger together. There was an emptiness at thoughts of you being gone for good. So I did it I mastered a technique, that took my father years, in weeks for you."

"I fought with you on the roof of the hospital because you wanted it but afterwards I saw that there was something wrong and what I had thought was getting better was actually getting worse. At The Valley of the End when you put your hand through my chest that was the first of you braking my heart, when you tried to put your sword through my chest made the fractures wider but when you came back and tried to take my dream away from me. I let those bonds break like you had wanted." He stopped talking and rubbed at his face.

"What do you feel for me now?" Naruto reached down and grabbed his jacket. Standing again he looked his former friend in the eye.

"Nothing. I feel nothing for you anymore. You are a comrade that's it, nothing more or less." He said and walked around the Uchiha intending to go back to camp.

"Would it help to say I'm sorry?"

"It's a start and if you work on it we may be able to be friends but that's it. I may have been in love with Sakura at one point but what I felt for you was so much more than that. I will always have those residual feelings but I will never allow you to ever get that close to me again." He finished and left Sasuke in the clearing by himself.

Sasuke waited until he could no longer hear the blond and fell to his hands and knees. His chest was tight and his breaths came in gasps. He didn't know what he was expecting when he follow the blonde but it wasn't this. Now he understood why his brother called him a fool and a fool is just what he was.

When he killed his brother and then later found out the truth he had regrets but was able to keep moving with a clear destination in mind. After he spoke with the former Hokages that destination changed but he kept going. Now he regretted ever decision he ever made and it didn't feel like he could keep going. What was he going to do now?

He looked to the sky and noticed it was getting late. The sun had risen and the reds were turning to golds and blues. He wiped his face clearing the previously unknown tears that had leaked from his eyes. He went to the bank of the river and splashed water on his face. Standing he took a few deep breaths and composed himself then went back to the camp where everyone was already awake. The camp had been torn down and everyone one was sitting around eating a quick breakfast. He pulled an apple out of his pack and sat with the rest eating quietly with his eyes to the ground. Right now he didn't think he could handle seeing the two show any type of affection to each other.

Sasuke was so lost in thought he almost missed hearing Naruto asking if they were all ready to go. He tossed the core into the wooded area and gather around Naruto with everyone else. This time he kept his eyes on the blonde while he went into Bijuu Mode. The visible proof of the power he now control was awe inspiring no matter how many times he saw it. If he had been more of an open person he would have told him he was proud of how strong he'd become. He would have told him he was proud of him for becoming Tsunade's successor. But he was only himself and that wouldn't change this late in his life.

Naruto placed a chakra arm on each of his companions and transported directly into the Hokage's office. They found her face down on a stack of papers sleeping. Naruto snickered quietly and looked to his former Sensei who grinned widely back. He let the Bijuu Mode fade when Jiraiya came to stand next to him. When he took a deep breath the rest of his team took a step back and to the side, in case of flying objects, all of them covering their ears in the process.

"BA-CHAN WAKE UP." He yelled as loud as he could causing her to jerk upright.

"Brat how many time do I have to tell you not to call me that…" Her sentence trailed off as she realized who was standing in front of her grinning happily.


	6. Urgent AN

I apologize for the log awaited next chapter but unfortunately I will not have a new chapter up any time soon. I have recently found out my husband of 12 years has been having an affair and I need to take time to get my life together. While writing is my escape from real life, I just will not have the time to continue right now. I have no plans to abandon my fics and I hope that I will be back on my feet sooner rather than later. I thank you all for your understand in this trying time and once again I am sorry.


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